


Wake me when she’s okay

by Mjbwrites



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, Drama, F/M, Fluff, Identity Reveal, Tiny bit of Lila Salt, identity drama
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:01:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24644500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mjbwrites/pseuds/Mjbwrites
Summary: An akuma pops up at in the courtyard of Françoise Dupont and Marinette hears Chat Noir scream. Can she save the day as Marinette, or will it cause more danger for the both of them?
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Comments: 26
Kudos: 107





	1. Chapter 1

“Marinette, watch out!” 

Marinette turned to watch Alya tackle her to the ground as a student from the railing above drops their cup of coffee. The splash missing both of them by a small inch, they both start laughing as they rise back up onto their feet.

“Thank you Al, I don’t think coffee stains go with my outfit!” 

“No problem girl, but you have got to pay attention rather than daydreaming about sunshine all day!” 

Marinette gave her best friend a small push to the shoulder as they giggled and walked to the courtyard to meet Nino and Adrien. The former spotting them immediately and walked to meet them, giving Alya a quick kiss on the cheek. The latter, however, was no where to be seen. Noticing Marinette looking around for him, Nino shrugged, saying no one had heard from him since his chinese lesson, but he was probably just running late. They sat down and saved him a spot while they tucked into their prepacked lunches, discussing the latest addition to the Ladyblog. 

However their conversation was cut short by the sound of a crowd of students rushing away to hide, followed by the screeching alarm. Since Hawkmoth had realised teenagers were the perfect prey for his Akuma’s, there had been an increase in students targeted. In response, the school had installed an alarm to warn students of an attack. Alya, who had begun grinning like a child, raced off in the direction of the distant screaming on the other side of the school with Nino chasing after begging her to slow down.

Marinette stole a small glance at Tikki, who had popped her head out of her nest inside Marinette’s purse, and ran in the opposite direction to find somewhere to transform. However, her plans were cut short as she ran around the corner and saw Chat Noir preparing to attack the akuma who was giving an announcement to the general direction of the terrified students below. 

“Ladybug, Chat Noir and people of Paris, I am Ivygate and you will hand me your miraculous!” 

“Huh, not very imaginative name, I wonder what his powers are”

Marinette whispered to Tikki, who giggled and pointed to an empty classroom. She took off running towards the classroom, stealing a glance at her partner pouncing on Ivygate, only to be caught in his fist and thrown straight towards her. She skidded to a halt as she watched razor sharp ivy vines shoot out the Akuma’s fist at a civilian and wrap around their body. She gasped in horror as the more the woman struggled, the tighter the vines were getting. She needed to hurry up and transform. That would’ve been easy, and life was never easy for Ladybug and Chat Noir. 

“Chat, watch out!” 

He couldn’t hear her as he tried to help usher an older couple safely inside a bus on the side of the road. ‘Stupid cat’ she mumbled as she glared at him not paying attention to the akuma, who had also noticed his back turned. Marinette was forced to watch as a helpless civilian as another vine grow and rip apart from the akuma. She traced it’s path and realised where he’d aimed. Not even the magic of the miraculous could prevent that shot being fatal to her precious kitty. Without thinking, she ran towards him and shoved him out the way just in time for thr vine to cut straight through her hip and wrap around her thigh. She screamed in pain as she was thrown in the air from the force, slamming back against a wall. She couldn’t hear much over the throbbing of her hip and her rapid heart. She didn’t hear Chat’s blood curdling scream as he raced towards her and held her face up to look at him.

“MARINETTE WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING. OH GOD ARE YOU OKAY? DOES IT HURT? TALK TO ME MARI C’MON TALK TO ME” 

His eyes were wide in panic, his fingers shaking gently against her face. He was looking desperately around, before muttering incoherent words and scooping her up, balancing her with one arm as he pulled out his baton and propelled them away from the smirking villain who had turned his attention to the police force who had arrived to help. He stopped on a rooftop, certain no one could harm her more up here. He placed her down gently, taking a quick look around to check he hadn’t been followed.

“Marinette, what the hell were you thinking? You got hurt because of me”

She was more focused on his voice now than the increasing pain in her side, but he hadn’t let the building pool of blood underneath her slip his gaze. She noticed, and held his chin to look at her face instead.

“Chat i’ll be fine! Ladybug will fix everything, but you need to go and stop the akuma!”

“But yo-“

“Go Chat! I’ll be fine” 

He frowned, but knew how stubborn she could be, and he had to help his lady save the rest of paris. She’d help Marinette. She had to. He slowly stood up and told her to remain there so he could come get her and check she was okay after. Marinette smiled and nodded, waiting until he’d lept off the rooftop to let out the small gasp she’d had grasping at her throat. Tikki flew out of the purse only to cry out when she saw what had happened to her chosen while she was hiding from Chat.

“Marinette you need medical attention, that looks serious!” 

“I’ll be fine, I need to purify the Akuma first! The miraculous Ladybug will restore everything!” 

Before Tikki had a chance to argue, Marinette began trying to stand, forgetting what had happened to the woman on the street moments before. The vine began getting tighter around her hip and thigh, cutting further into her skin. Luckily, her vine had been short and only covered a small area, she still had one free leg and her arms. She was determined not to let Tikki notice the increase in pain, praying the suit would stop the blood. 

“Marinette, you cannot transform like th-“ 

“Tikki, Spots On!”


	2. Can Ladybug last the battle?

“Tikki, Spots On!”

Ladybug stood from where she had been crouching, hesitant to let go of the wall she had been using to support herself. She shut her eyes and braced herself before letting go and immediately stumbling from the pain. Shit. She was still hurt even after transforming. 

This was bad...

No, she wouldn’t let herself worry. She had to protect Chat from the same fate, god knows her kitty was always throwing himself in front of Akuma’s to save her. She could do this, she was ladybug! She thought of Alya no doubt at the scene already, motivating herself enough to take a few steps forward to the edge of the roof. She flicked her yoyo around a lamppost a few streets across, and muttered an apology to Tikki, even though Marinette was pretty sure she couldn’t hear her while transformed.   
She had wasted enough time. she took a deep breathe, and jumped off the ledge.

“What have you done with Ladybug, you pesky feline? Why isn’t she here?!” 

“I’ll ask her myself when she gets here” he muttered in response. Normally, Chat would respond with a witty comeback, a cheeky grin or a cat themed pun. But every second the fight went on, he knew Marinette was in more pain. He was too worried to make snarky comments back. He began getting impatient with his lady, landing on the Eiffel Tower, out of reach from Ivygate, to call her on his Baton. She picked up after only a few rings.

“Ladybug whe-“

“Chat I am SO sorry I am on my way I promise. I had some trouble, uh, getting away as my civilian self to transform. I’m coming!”

He was about to respond when he saw a red blur from the corner of his eye. Well, no. She wasn’t going fast enough to be a blur. He could see her wobble each time she took a few steps, barely jogging across the rooftops. That wasn’t like his lady at all. She was always fast, confident and able to take control of a situation. 

“Ladybug, turn left and head to the top of the Eiffel, let’s discuss a plan before we head into fight.”

He didn’t give her chance to argue before closing his baton. He watched her stop and stare at her yoyo, before changing direction and heading for him. It took her a lot longer than normal to get to him, he often lost their races from the streets to the top of the tower. He knew something was off, but as expected she arrived and looked at him as if nothing was wrong.

“Okay kitty, lets plan. The vines shoot from his fist, but from what I observed he can only shoot one at a time. I guess the vines need to grow bef...”

“How do you know that if you haven’t even gotten to the Akuma yet?” 

She paled, and he could’ve sworn he heard her stutter. “Oh r-right, well I saw it as a c-civilian! I almost got hit but I managed to, um, get away! Right, get away! So I could transform!” 

She couldn’t place the look in his eye. Had he bought it? She hated lying to him, but she couldn’t tell him she got hit, he would either figure out her identity, or he wouldn’t let her fight.

“I’m not saying I believe that’s what’s wrong ladybug, but I don’t have time to stand and figure it out. My friend got injured and we have to save her. Approaching from the back doesn’t work, so we’ll have to approach him from two angles. There are no civilians near him, but that Ladyblogger is on a rooftop nearby to film, it was the only way she’d agree to leave the street away from danger. His fists have remained shut the entire fight, so my assumption is that’s where the akuma is hiding”

“Good work kitty! Lets go save your friend! Wait, is she your friend outside or inside the mask? Actually no, don’t answer that! Let’s go!”

She waited for him to extend his baton before following, knowing she had to stay behind him in order to keep up the facade of being uninjured. He prepared to jump, but not before shooting his signature wink. 

She tried to keep up, but with every step, the vines seem to cut deeper. What worried her, was how vivid the pain was INSIDE the suit. Which meant the pain when the suit came off would be unbearable. But she couldn’t think about that right now. Luckily, Ivygate hadn’t been able to trap many innocent bystanders, and the ones he did were fully trapped inside vines that served more as cages than anything cutting in or causing damage. Ladybug could breathe, no Parisian was in as much pain as she was. She could afford a few extra seconds to breathe through the pain.

“Chat! Make him aim for you, i’ll use my yoyo to prize open his fist, and you knock whatever item inside away with your baton and use your Catacylsm! Okay?”

He nodded in response before turning the final corner and standing straight in front of the akuma, who noticed him rather instantly. Ladybug rested her hand against her hip and could feel the blood underneath, she was desperately running out of time before she lost consciousness. She panted, and counted to three before lunging directly at the akuma. She managed to land on his fist and began throwing her yoyo around his fingers, paying too much attention to notice who the Akuma had begun aiming at instead. She just jumped off and ran to the other side of the road as a vine twisted around where she had been stood. 

“Lucky Charm!”

A small spray bottle landed by her side, but Ladybug was out of time. She pulled on the yoyo, focusing too much on the Akuma’s fist unraveling to notice the vine heading straight towards Chat, who was trying to tell her something. A small groan was heard as a sea of green engulfed him, but not seeming to harm him. A small object fell from the Akuma’s fist as he stomped towards Ladybug. She studied the bottle, there was no label but she could smell the contents easily. Almost forgetting about her own injuries, she sprinted towards Chat to spray the cage of Ivy vines. The leaves slowly began to deteriorate around him, leaving a curled up Chat Noir.

“Those things were sharp! One kept poking me in the butt! Let’s finish this guy off lad-“

He paused and looked at his lady, a pained expression on her face as she clenched her jaw, visibly tensing.

“Ladybug what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, lets finish the job Kitty” she almost hissed. He didn’t seem convinced, but nodded and ran towards the akuma, his ring beeping. Three minutes.

Her head was beginning to pound, and the vines had began to cut further into her thigh, now spanning from the bottom of her ribs on her left side to the inner edge of her right thigh. It was growing. She silently begged Tikki to let the miraculous ladybugs fix everything as she ran off after Chat. She could do this. She had to do this.

The rest of the battle went rather quickly, both heroes despite to wrap it up. Chat couldn’t stop thinking of Marinette’s face, the pool of blood that formed underneath her. He had to make sure she was okay.

“Time to de-evilise!”

There was no goodbye to the butterfly. There was no pound it. 

“Ladybug I’m sorry to run off but I have to go check on my friend i’m sorry, don’t forget to restore everything! I’ll see you on patrol tomorrow evening!” 

Chat all but blurted out as he ran off and leaped across the skyline until he was out of sight. If she’d had the energy, she would’ve questioned him more, or perhaps realised it was HER he was looking for. Instead, she walked towards the corner of the empty street as her transformation wore off, earrings flashing for a final time. She didn’t get time to call for her Miraculous Ladybugs to fix everything like Chat had asked. Tikki was about to argue about transforming in the middle of the street until she realised Marinette wasn’t listening to any words the Kwami was saying. The vines had dug and grown across almost half her body, a few bones visible as the blood spilled out at an alarming rate.

“Marinette, we REALLY need to the miraculous ladybugs, I can hold it for a little while if I recharge with a macaroon but we need to hurry! Marinette? MARINETTE?”

Tikki began tapping lightly on her chosen’s face, now lay flat on the floor against the cold cement. She was breathing but unconscious. 

Across town, Chat Noir was racing across the rooftops.   
“I haven’t seen any ladybugs across the sky, but no buildings were toppled over or crushed. I suppose I wouldn’t see them anyway. I just hope Mari’s okay” he spoke to no one in particular as he jumped over the final few roofs.

“Mari I’m sorry I left you here, I had to fi- MARI?! MARINETTE WHERE ARE YOU?”

He looked around desperately as if he’d walked right past her, until his eyes settled on the pool of blood that had formed underneath her earlier. 

“But if that’s still there, then ladybug hasn’t reverted the damage and” he didn’t want to finish the next bit of the sentence. He’d been fighting for what felt like an hour, and she hadn’t been helped. No medical attention could’ve spotted and helped her on top of a roof, she must’ve found a way down to find help. He leapt onto the street just as his ring beeped five minutes and his transformation dropped itself. 

“Kid, before you panic, let’s take a deep breath and-“   
Plagg was soon cut off, but not by Adrien panicking. No, he seemed calmer than Plagg would’ve expected.

“Ladybug hasn’t fixed everything. What the hell is she waiting for? We finished the fight and she knew I was worried about someone. Just because she was distracted by something. She didn’t listen to anything I said to her. If Mari is hurt, it’s on HER”

His face radiated anger. He picked up the speed slightly as he looked around for Marinette, but he didn’t speak another word. Plagg floated up, looking down at the map until he could just make out someone lay in the middle of the street. He knew instantly who it was. 

“Plagg stop floating around this is serious. It isn’t a game”

“Kid, shut up. If you want to find Pigtails, follow me”

Adrien opened his mouth to argue, but soon decided against it as Plagg began to fly off. He ran behind until he saw Plagg fly back towards him and hide in this pocket.

He was about to yell at the Kwami when he heard a scream. There were people around. He instinctively ran towards the sound, turning a corner to see a girl kneel on the ground with her back facing him. He began walking towards her until he realised she was ringing for an ambulance, the phone on loudspeaker as they were giving the girl instructions to help.

“Okay, an ambulance is on their way! Can I take your name so the crew know who to talk to when they arrive?”

“A-Alya. Alya Césaire”

His face paled. He knelt beside her, unable to look at her as they both stared down at their close friend unconscious on the ground below them. 

He clenched his fists against the floor until his knuckles were white. Ladybug was going to have a lot of explaining to do when he found her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got excited so here is the second chapter!! Again, it’s not beta read much so please excuse any errors!! I hope you like it! See you for part three!!


	3. Hello, Alya Césaire

The ambulance took 2 minutes to arrive at the scene but for Adrien and Alya, it felt like hours, maybe even days. Neither of them had spoken a word, both getting up and standing to the side to let the crew do their job. Adrien couldn’t make out the hushed words shared between the crew, too busy staring at Marinette being wrapped onto a guerney and ushered into the back of the vehicle. She had to pull through. She had too. 

“We’re going to need Alya to come with us to answer a few questions on the ride and to be there with her in case she gains consciousness, if that’s okay miss?” 

She wiped her eyes and nodded at the crew member. Adrien knew it made sense for her to go and not him, she’d found her first. But his stomach didn’t sit right knowing she’d be out of sight, he couldn’t just let her leave. Alya squeezed his hand tighter to get his attention.

“She’ll pull through, sunshine. She’s a fighter. I’ll text you when she wakes up, i promise.”

He gulped, unable to voice any words for fear of bursting out into sobs. Deciding to simply nod, he let go of her hand and watched her climb into the back of the ambulance as the crew shut the doors, got into the front and drove promptly off until he was alone. Stood in the middle of the street on the verge of tears. He had to get out of here.

“Kid, I think you need a breather. Lets find somewhere private and have a chat about it, okay?”   
Plaggs voice was soft and gentle. There was no snicker or teasing tone. Adrien all but whispered the words until he stood in his suit. He took one last look at the corner the ambulance had taken off to, and sprinted towards the Eiffel tower.

Adrien sat dangling his feet off the edge as the wind brushed against his bare hands, his Kwami sat next to him slowly nibbling on a piece of cheese so they had enough energy to get back home again. He’d managed to convince Nathalie to let him stay with Nino until the end of the school day where he was to meet Gorilla as normal. He text Nino to say his father had requested him back as soon as the news of the Akuma had reached TV. No one would look for him for another few hours. He could scream and cry his heart out up here, and that’s exactly what he did.   
Plagg remained on the look out for an Akuma, he knew Adrien needed this. He couldn’t tell him why Ladybug had let Marinette struggle, or that she didn’t choose to transform before fixing everything. He knew even now, Tikki wouldn’t let him give it away. Adrien had to focus, and Marinette had to heal. They couldn’t add in confusion and emotions just yet. 

Across town, Alya was sat in the waiting room next to Tom and Sabine who had just arrived. The lead doctor came out and told them Marinette would be in theatre for at least a few hours, they should all get something to eat and come back. If she came out early, he’d ring Tom to inform them.

“Alya honey, would you like to come back with us to the bakery and have something to eat? I’ll ring your mum when we get there” Sabine said with a smile, despite the tears still falling from her eyes. The brunette girl nodded, still not able to wrap her head around what had happened. She’d been following the battle while filming, until Chat noir had left and Ladybug went out of view. She began walking back towards the school when she’d seen Mari lay in the road. She wasn’t an idiot, she knew what had hurt Mari was from the Akuma fight, but it was over. She watched Ladybug purify the akuma! So why was there no ladybugs fixing the city? Granted there wasn’t TOO much damage to the city, no buildings collapsed and the Parisians who were trapped in vine cages were being cut free with garden shears and weed killer. But her best friend lay bleeding out in the street, and she wasn’t sure if she could idolise Ladybug so much anymore. 

No akuma’s had come for Adrien, who had now calmed a little. He would wait for Alya’s text and not rest until he got it. However, he had another message he wanted to give first.

“Kid, i think you need to cool off before thinking of talking to Ladybug. You don’t know what happe-“ 

“I don’t care what happened Plagg, it’s her job to fix the city after a battle, to care about it’s residents too. She did neither. I’m not sure I want to be near her for a while.  
Plagg, claws out”

He reached for his baton, and dialled the only contact on it. His lady. Of course, she didn’t pick up. He decided to leave a voicemail instead

“Ladybug, I have saved you countless times, and I could always trust you to save me too. But today, you failed as Ladybug. You were slow, clumsy, you were distracted the entire time and you didn’t even bother to fix the damn city. Don’t bother showing up to Patrol tomorrow, in fact don’t bother showing up to any battles for a while until you learn how to ACTUALLY do your job. Goodbye.”

He extended his baton, and leapt back towards the school, transforming around the corner and walking round just in time to see Gorilla pull up. 

Alya’s mum had joined them at the bakery, keeping Alya company while Tom and Sabine went up to their house to have a few moments. Tom came down with his phone in his hand

“The doctors have rang, she’s out of surgery. She’s not showing any signs of waking up any time soon, but we can see her if we’d like. Alya, would you like to come? You’re more than welcome to”

She looked over at Tom, smiling so softly at her as if he’d known her forever, and back at her mum. They all smiled and nodded, alya’s mum coming along too. Not just for support, she’d grown very fond of her daughters best friend, and she wanted her to pull through. 

Tom and Sabine went in first, while Alya and her mum waited outside the door. Once they’d come out, Alya asked to go in alone. She had some things to say without her mum being around.   
She gently pushed the door and slipped inside. The air was cold inside the room, the only noise to be heard was the beeping from monitors and a slight wind knocking across the window. She almost didn’t want to look, but she brought her eyes up to her best friend laying on the bed. Her purse and bags laying on the chair next to her. She’d insisted the ambulance crew take them with Mari rather than her keep them safe until she woke up. Marinette always freaked out if she didn’t have her purse with her, though she never actually knew why.   
Alya stepped closer to the bed, and reached for Marinettes hand. It had an IV line connected to it, but they were pale and cold. 

“Mari, i’m so sorry this happened to you, I don’t even know WHAT happened to you. I was too busy following Ladybug, I should’ve stayed with you to make sure you were okay! I don’t know why Ladybug didn’t fix things after the battle, if she did I doubt you’d be laying here. I’m so sorry. I don’t think I can upload the footage to my ladyblog knowing you were injured in the meantime. Adrien sat with me while we waited for an ambulance, he cried too Mari. He wanted to come with you but the crew wouldn’t let him. He muttered something about ladybug as i got into the ambulance but I didn’t hear what he said about her. All i know is she failed you, I failed you. I’d ask for forgiveness but I know I wouldn’t be able to forgive Ladybug simply because she asked me too. But I know one thing, i will find out why she didn’t finish her job; and I will find out how to heal you Mari, just hold on tight! Please?”

She shut her eyes and let the tears fall freely now, not trying to hold them back. Her fists began to clench the sides of the bed. Her eyes opened and flickered towards her bag. She was about to walk towards it when she saw something out the corner of her eye. A flash of red. Her anger at ladybug must be playing tricks on her. She turned towards the door and took a single step before a new noise cut through the beeping. 

Not a noise, a small, high pitched voice.

“Hello, Alya Césaire.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a small chapter but I promise the next one will be worth it!!


	4. Chapter 4

“Hello, Alya Césaire.”

Alya froze on the spot, almost resisting the urge to turn around and see who had spoken. But as she gave in to the curiosity and span around, she dropped her phone and her bag on the floor. 

‘It couldn’t be. No. It just couldn’t be. She’d read about them, this one specifically. She did a whole article about the rumour surrounding their kind, plus as Rena Rouge she’d met Trixx, but it wasn’t as if she got to ask her a load of questions before giving her miraculous back to ladybug. Ladybug...’

She was soon pulled out of her thoughts however by the creature floating before her.

“I’m sorry for scaring you, under normal circumstances I would never reveal myself in front of anyone other than Marinette. I’m sure you know what I am, but for formalities: I am Tikki, the kwami of Ladybug.”

Alya’s throat had run dry. Why was Ladybugs kwami with Marinette? It couldn’t be.. no. Absolutely not. It was absolutely not her best friend risking her life every day. It was not her best friend who had been thrown around countless times to save the city. It just couldn’t be. She couldn’t imagine Marinette being in such danger. But here she was, lay before Alya fighting for her own life.

“If you’re ladybugs kwami, why are you with Marinette?”

Tikki turned to look at the unconscious girl on the bed. She looked so fragile, yet Tikki could practically feel the strength ebbing from her soul. Marinette was her favourite chosen, and she really didn’t think anyone could replace the 14th ladybug. 

“I try to be close to Ladybug at all times in case of an akuma. But, i doubt Marinette will be able to transform for a while. I’m sorry to drop this on you after seeing her like this. I understand this is huge news, but identities remaining secret is the main priority for miraculous holders, especially Ladybug and Chat Noir. If Ladybug wasn’t the guardian, I wouldn’t be telling you as it would mean Marinette would lose being ladybug. However, she is and due to the current situation, I had to talk to someone. You are who she trusts most.”

Alya hadn’t been able to prize her gaze off marinette while Tikki had been speaking. Her best friend was ladybug. Her best friend was the hero who fearlessly swung into battle to save hundreds of lives she didn’t know. Her best friend who was always late to class .... oh well that one sort of makes sense now. Her clumsy, kind and selfless Marinette was ladybug. Why hadn’t she put two and two together before? Marinette was ladybug. Marinette had chosen HER to be rena rouge; the first hero to fight alongside the main two. Marinette chose to speak to her before any other reporters when answering questions. Marinette pretended to organise an interview, as herself, with her.

“Well, she can save paris a hell of a lot better than she can talk to her crush, that’s for sure” Alya joked, half speaking half breathing. She was still in shock, but the more it turned in her brain, the more it made sense. Suddenly, Alya’s mind clicked back towards something Tikki had said

“Wait, you said you had to choose someone to talk to. About what? Marinette isn’t going to have to give up being guardian is she?” She looked anxiously towards the kwami, who had a rather unreadable expression on her face.

“No, Ladybug is the best miraculous holder i’ve seen for many generations, she has been making fine progress as a guardian too. The problem is, as you said before, ladybug didn’t get to use her miraculous ladybugs to fix the damage. Marinette had been hit by the akuma trying to save Chat before she’d been able to sneak off and transform. Though she was throughly injured, she chose to transform anyway to fight. This is why she seemed slightly distracted to every civilian, how could you have known she was bleeding so heavily under the suit? Anyway, she didn’t choose to detransform so abruptly, not only was she out of time, but I could not sustain the strength to hold her wounds together with the suit any longer. Luckily, you found her very soon after and here we are. Though, I need to see Chat Noir and his kwami to explain Ladybug will be out of action for a while which is where you come in! I need you to stay with Marinette later today while I go to find them, so if she wakes up and see’s me missing from her purse, she doesn’t assume Hawkmoth has me or the whole of paris knows her identity.”

Alya considered it for a moment. She’s sure Mr and Mrs Dupain-Cheng would let her spend time with Mari again later on, but if she wakes up and finds out Alya knows about her, will she be mad? She shouldn’t get so worked up so soon after being injured. But tikki had said there was no one she trusted more. She looked at the small kwami, now mere inches away from her. She nodded as she held out her hands for tikki to sit.

“Okay Tikki, I’ll do it!”

Across Paris, Adrien was slowly eating his food. Of course, Gabriel hadn’t joined him for dinner and he wasn’t really listening to Nathalie read out his itinerary for the morning. He just wanted to go to his room and text Alya. She’d text to say she hadn’t woken up yet but had come out of surgery and was stable. He wanted a second update, he knew she was going back there in an hour or so, so Marinette’s parents could have a shower and some food and some rest before they went back. He barely registered Nathalie dismissing him from the table until he felt Plagg flick him in the chest from his pocket. He mumbled his thanks and made his way to his room.

He attempted to play the piano, but he couldn’t focus enough for it to sound anywhere near his father’s expectation of his abilities, and he sure didn’t want Nathalie barging in to tell him to practise more. He decided to play the loop of piano on his phone through his speakers and lay on his bed. The entire day, his mind had only flickered between two dark haired girls. One he worried for dearly, and one he felt sick at the mention of. He knew he had to forgive her soon, he couldn’t fight alongside her while they weren’t speaking. But for now, he couldn’t bring himself to forgive. Not until Marinette was awake and well.

He let his mind wonder, not registering the hours fly by until he heard a tiny tap. He looked around to check Plagg had hidden, as he normally did if anyone was nearing. But to his surprise, Plagg was flying towards the window instead, mumbling to himself too quietly for Adrien to understand. Though he didn’t have to wonder long, as Plagg turned around and stared at him, soon followed by Tikki entering the window.

“Hello Chat Noir, it’s been a while since reflecta”

She said it with a smile, but her tone wasn’t as sweet as it was that day he’d found her instead of plagg. 

“Hello Tikki, I suppose Ladybug sent you because she can’t face me after her pathetic actions?” Adrien hadn’t meant to come across so salty, well actually maybe he had. He was expecting a small huff, or perhaps an aggressive tut. That’s usually what he got from Plagg if he was annoyed. 

Though he wasn’t expecting her to fly directly at his face with a cold glaze over her eyes. He counted himself lucky she was the kwami of creation rather than destruction, else he’d be sure she would’ve cataclysmed him right there.

“Don’t you EVER call Ladybug pathetic. What happened at the end of the battle was not in her control and I would expect better behaviour from Paris’ superheros. Considering the fact YOU had to be saved by a civilian, i’d watch who you insult before I inform Ladybug we should choose a more mature Chat Noir.” 

She didn’t stutter once, nor had she blinked a single second while staring at him. He wanted to be angry, he wanted to slap her away. Who was she to call HIM immature? He hadn’t needed saving. He was Chat Noir. HE did the saving. Marinette had simply been trying to shove him and... oh who was he kidding. He knew it was his fault she got hurt. He wasn’t paying attention, and he’d immediately blamed it on someone else.

“Perhaps I did drop the ball too, but I’m not sure I believe that it wasn’t Ladybug’s choice to abandon the fight, she was distracted the entire time. 

This time, it was Plagg who responded to Adriens halfhearted reply.

“Adrien, I know you’re worried about Pigtails, but if Tikki says it wasn’t Ladybug’s choice, then it wasn’t ladybugs choice. Just because you’re worried and reflecting your anger at yourself onto other people, doesn’t mean you can disrespect Sugarcube or her chosen. Ladybug was chosen not only to BE ladybug, but may I remind you she was chosen to be Guardian too.”

At that, Adrien had nothing. He hadn’t expected to be argued back not only by Tikki, but Plagg too. Based on the coldness in Plagg’s tone, he was more than sure he’d owe the kwami some Camembert wheels for it too. He didn’t want to fight with either kwami. He wasn’t even sure why Ladybugs was here if not to avoid coming here herself.

“I’m sorry Tikki, but if you’re not here for that, then why are you here?”

She sighed, though barely audible, and floated back towards Plagg. Adrien let out a breath he hadn’t realised he’d been holding with her so close. Was she always this intimidating? 

“Ladybug will be unable to attend any akuma battles for the next few days at the very minimum. Due to the miraculous fix not being activated, ladybug herself as a civilian was also hurt. It’s not just your friend who was injured. I am in the midst of finding an alternative holder in case of an Akuma attack before Ladybug has healed.” 

She paused, and Adrien had every intention to butt in with, firstly an apology for assuming Marinette had been the only one injured, and secondly to argue the idea of a replacement for his lady when Tikki made it clear she hadn’t finished. She had to make sure Chat didn’t make the connection being marinette and ladybug both being injured.

“If you visit your friend in the hospital, do not DARE to look around other wards to sniff out Ladybugs identity. I’ll sense plagg nearby and separate myself from Ladybug’s civilian self to keep an eye on you. I came here to have a peaceful conversation, however your selfish spite immediately dampened the mood. You should be ashamed of yourself Adrien. Ladybug trusts you as a partner and as her closest friend, and you immediately assumed the worst of her.”

And with that, she phased back through the glass pane and vanished into the distance.  
For a few minutes, neither Adrien nor Plagg said a word. The only sound filling the room was the fake piano playing through his phone and the faint chomping of cheese. He wanted to be mad at Tikki, he really did. But how could he when he knew she was right. He had assumed the worst of Ladybug immediately, when she’d given nothing but her very best in every akuma fight since they began fighting together. Then, he didn’t believe her kwami even though he knew it wasn’t in Kwami’s behaviour to lie unless necessary. Tikki had been so sweet and gentle when he became Misterbug, and Ladybug always spoke to highly of her. He wondered when the last time she’d gotten so riled up, though Plagg either read his thoughts, or Adrien had been muttering them outloud again, as his question was seemingly answered.

“You know kid, I haven’t seen sugarcube so worked up for many years, i think it was 3 different holder’s ago. I know Marinette is important to you, but Ladybug is hurt too. You shouldn’t be so hard on her. She’d saved you every single time you fell under the akuma’s spell whether you sacrificed yourself or not. I know you’re worried, but you need to calm down a bit. Pigtail’s friend will text you when anything changes with her. Until then, you need to have some cheese or something to chill you out... not my cheese though, unless you planning on buying me more?” Plagg finished with a playful yet hopeful grin. Adrien just laughed, his kwami was right. If his lady was out of action, that meant he had to be calm and extra alert for akumas. 

“Tikki you’re back! That didn’t take long!” Alya said with a smile when she saw the small red creature reappear quietly into the room

“Nothing much has changed with Mari, though the doctors reckon it’s unlikely she’ll wake up overnight and advised her parents and I all stay home and rest. I just feel bad leaving her, you know? I know she’s paris’ greatest hero, but she’s also my clumsy best friend who trips up stairs more than anyone. I don’t like seeing her hurt”

Tikki smiled softly as she rested gently into Alya’s open hands and gave her thumb a small cuddle, earning a slight giggle out of the brunette.

“She’ll be okay, I’ll be near her in her purse if she wakes and the nurses will do rounds every couple of hours to check up on her. Though Alya, now you know of Ladybug’s true identity, do you see now that your classmate was lying about being best friends with ladybug?” 

Alya hadn’t thought of Lila, but now Tikki had mentioned it, she began working her way through the things the Italian girl had said. She did say she knew Ladybug, and she’s saved Lila’s life many times. Though she already believed Marinette, it was now even more apparent that she, the saviour of paris, would not shove anyone down the stairs. Her brain began to scatter through other things lila had claimed, she’s been so insistent on giving the girl a chance, she hadn’t actually fact checked anything the girl said. Alya hadn’t realised she was crying until she felt the first few tears drop onto her lap, closely followed by streams of them rolling down her cheeks. She’d believed Lila over her best friend, blaming it on jealousy over Adrien. Tikki told her Marinette would forgive her as she tried to control herself and stop the tears. 

It was a good ten minutes before she got herself back to being stable enough to go home to rest. In the morning, she would ring Nino and tell him about Lila, and maybe Adrien too. But for now, she would leave her best friend to peacefully rest. She looked back at the bed once more before calling her mum for a lift and walking out of the room, leaving Tikki to lay in her nest inside Marinettes purse, slowly falling asleep to the calm, consistent sounds of the monitor beeping.

Morning soon came and Marinette’s parents were back for a hour before returning to the bakery ready for opening time. Alya was going to spend the morning with Nino explaining Lila’s lies without revealing the reason why she realised them in the first place. Tikki was hiding from the doctors doing their hourly check on Marinette, about to check on her herself as they left, until she heard hesitant footsteps enter the room. She was about to peek to see who it was, when a familiar black kwami flew around the room and through the purse to join her.

“Plagg, don’t touch anything in there. Just hide in there and do not get seen okay?” She heard Adrien whisper through gritted teeth. Plagg gave a half hearted “yeah yeah” response before nibbling on a travel size piece of camembert, earning an unimpressed look from Tikki.

Adrien stepped closer to the bed, looking down at Marinette. He flipped through her clipboard, not really understanding it but making a note of a few of the procedures she’d gone through to look them up on his phone later. He knew this was mainly his fault for not paying attention, but he also felt an unknown feeling similar to flattery that she had felt the urge to save him, but he refused to think further into what that feeling could be. He loved ladybug, and only ladybug. Marinette would risk herself to save anyone, he told himself. If only he know how right he actually was.

He took a sharp breath in before brushing his hand softly against hers, they seemed slightly cold yet it was almost as if he could feel the heat blooming from his touch. He looped his index finger underneath her hand into her palm, not quite brave enough to fully hold her hand properly. He brought his face down to it, planting a small but meaningful kiss onto her knuckles. He stayed there for a few moments, revelling in how normal it felt to have kissed her hand like he would his lady’s. Slowly, he stood back upright but didn’t let go of her hand. Instead, he held in properly, interlocking their fingers and squeezing ever so gently. He hated seeing her here, linked to so many tubes when he knew he could’ve stopped it. But, he’d also never seen her so peaceful. She was always trying to grab tiny moments of sleep in classes, and often came in a few minutes late to the start of the day. Even as Chat, he’d patrol past her balcony in the middle of the night and see her bedroom light still on sometimes. Not always stopping to ask why, it was rare she gave him details other than projects she was working on. He always suspected she was up because of more than fashion, but never wished to push her too much into telling a stray cat without knowing who was underneath the mask. If he could tell anyone besides ladybug, she’d definitely be his choice. Maybe he’d try to have the conversation with Ladybug again about telling each other their identities, or at the very least telling his very close friend Marinette. 

He suddenly remembered the main reason he’d come to visit, other than see with his own eyes she was okay. He reluctantly separated their hands and reached into his back pocket, pulling out a slightly crinkled envelope and placed it on the beside table. He checked his watch and saw he had only a few minutes before Gorilla would be here to take him to fencing. He leant forward and planted a soft kiss on her forehead before calling for Plagg and being slightly confused when the kwami reappeared with a smile on his face, but decided it was probably the cheese, and walked out the door towards the car.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope ya’ll enjoyed this chapter !! I wonder what’s inside the envelope 👀 stay tuned for chapter 5 to find out!!


	5. Chapter 5

Adrien finished up fencing and headed to meet Alya and Nino in the park. They all needed each other, but when he saw them Alya had a different look on her face than she had last he spoke to her. Almost like she knew something, but he couldn’t tell if it had made her feel better or worse. Nino kept a firm grip of his girlfriend’s shoulder as they all said their hellos and got comfortable on the grass. There was a silence lingering for a few moments, but not an awkward one. Rather an acknowledgment of the missing piece from their group. 

“I can’t believe she hasn’t woken up yet. The longer this goes on, the worse I feel. I can’t imagine what Tom and Sabine are like right now. I spoke to them today but they didn’t say much, neither of them looked well rested.” Alya spoke with a hesitant voice, extremely close to tears. Her best friend could be unconscious for a few more days or even weeks. No one knew. She’d noted to herself to ask Tikki, who seemed to know more than the doctors, but it’s not like she could tell anyone else about that.

Nino patted Alya gently as a way of support before replying.  
“She’ll wake up babe, I know she will. But in the mean time, Ladybug still hasn’t been spotted since the akuma fight either. It hasn’t gone unnoticed and people are beginning to worry. I heard Nadia Chamack is mentioning it on tonights news.” 

Alya tensed, but she saw Adrien stiffen at the mention of Ladybug too. Of course, she had her reasons to stiffen and he didn’t seem to notice she had. But what reason could he have? She was sure Nino had said Adrien was always smiley when she was mentioned, and there was no way he knew who ladybug was. 

Adrien, however, began to feel extremely uncomfortable. He had patrol in a few hours and Tikki had said LB was out of action for a few days, he had no idea if she’d turn up for Patrol or not. He regretted sending such an angry voicemail, and raising his voice at Tikki too, though she’d put him in his place rather quickly. He’d felt sick for hours after she left knowing his lady was also injured, but she sounded better than the position Mari was in. It was painful not knowing when she’d come to, or when he’d find gaps in his schedule to see her, but perhaps if LB didn’t turn up for patrol, he could swing by as Chat. After all, she did get hurt trying to save him, the least he could do is visit her. 

“There hasn’t been an akuma since Ivygate, and you rarely see her outside of battles. When she’s needed, she’ll be there” Adrien tried to sound confident, he really did, but even he didn’t know if she’d be there or not. His only hope was he got to see her before she checked her voicemails. Damn baton didn’t give you an option to delete them.

The three friends remained talking for a while before splitting off to their own houses for dinner. Alya went to Marinette’s to have dinner with Tom and Sabine, all three of them having had a few moments at the hospital throughout the day but nothing had changed. Not a single one of them had felt much of an appetite but they all tried to eat what they could anyway. Across town, Adrien ate his dinner in silence across the table from his father, who had actually stayed and ate with him, while Nathalie listed his evening activities. He quickly left and went up to his room. He had 45 minutes before he needed to leave for patrol, so he decided to practise the piano and draft a text to Marinette for her to check when she wakes up. He rushed through his piano, knowing a large chunk of songs off by heart due to it being his most common activity his Father scheduled. Next came the hard part: what to say to Mari? 

Plagg mumbled and groaned at almost every one of Adrien’s ideas until he was frustrated and emptyminded.

“Well what do YOU suggest Plagg if you’re so full of ideas huh?”

He almost managed a smirk, almost. Until Plagg actually DID come up with a good point.

“Pigtails has been through a lot already, when she wakes up she’ll be fussed over nonstop by a whole host of people. She needs a reminder to relax and to breathe, not to be smothered by a love poem.”

Adrien thanked him under his breath as he text her and sent it off, happy and content with his text.

Adrien <3 : Hey Mari, I just wanted to send you this for when you wake up. No doubt everything will be intense and intimidating for a while, but remember to breathe. You’re going to be okay, I promise to keep you safe however I can. Text me when you feel up to it, so I know you’re awake and stable :) 

There. With one girl worries off his mind, he could focus on the other. He still had no clue whether she’d turn up to patrol, if Tikki had told her she’d yelled at him. He wished he knew her identity so he could take care of her, like he was trying to do for Mari. But nevertheless, he wouldn’t get his answer stood in his bedroom all night.

“Plagg, Claws out!” 

Chat raced across the rooftops, anxious to get to their meeting spot but excited to be his alterego superhero self once again! His freedom was limitless as Chat, he could race around Paris all he liked. As he approached their normal meeting point, he could’ve sworn he saw a shadow up there. His lady must be there! She did show up, she must not be injured anymore! He leapt even faster, feeling his stomach twist in happy nerves as he raced closer, a smile blooming across his cheeks. He extended his baton a last time and rolled onto the rooftop. He ran towards the chimney and stepped around it to be face to face with the girl causing the shadow.

“My Lady! I’m so glad to see you! I was worried yo-“ 

She stepped closer to him and he soon realised who he was speaking to.

“I’m sorry Chat, I’m told LB still isn’t feeling so good so Tikki dropped off my miraculous so you weren’t alone on Patrol”

“That’s okay Rena, good to see you! Since you haven’t done our normal patrol route before, we’ll do it together tonight so you can get used to the rough route we take and then if you join again, you’ll feel more confident to split like me and Ladybug do!” 

She smiled and the disappointment he felt at not seeing his lady slowly began to disintegrate around him until he found himself laughing with Rena as he told his famous chat puns and furtastic jokes. He could tell something was off though, Rena was holding back a lot more than she had been the past few times he’d fought alongside her, though he still had no idea who she was underneath. But route memorising was important, and Tikki had reminded him Chat Noir must be sensible when it counts, so he’d ask Rena about it once they’d finished. 

Most of Paris was asleep when they finally sat at the top of the Eiffel tower and dangled their feet over the edge. He glanced over to Rena, who had her back arched and her eyes closed throughly enjoying the wind on her cheeks. He was about to open his mouth and ask her what’s wrong, until she beat him to it.

“Are you worried? A-About LB I mean! I hear that Ladyblog website is buzzing with her still not being seen. I know better than to listen to rumours but... i still worry about her.”

He could feel her eyes roaming around uneasily though they were shut, so he decided to move into a similar position and shut his eyes too, almost feeling her tension begin to dissipate sensing his change in stance becoming more relaxed.

“Well, Bugaboo is a tough one, and she’d never let Hawkmoth get wind that he hurt her, so I understand hiding until she is stronger. The world saw her few miscalculated mistakes as it was, let alone to know their beloved superhero wasn’t as invincible as they’d painted her to be. I have an idea though, since a few people are out and about tonight. We’ll use your Mirage to create the illusion of Bugaboo just swinging from a few buildings until she’s been spotted by a few people. That’ll reassure everyone so less people are easy prey for Hawkmoth.” 

Rena nodded, agreeing upon the idea for the sake of Paris. Though deep down it felt like she was replacing her best friend with a fake version, she wanted to tell everyone how brave and selfless Marinette had actually been, their beloved saviour, but she knew the longer LB wasn’t seen, the more unease would settle upon Paris which would only make half the city easy prey. So she and Chat sat there as she controlled an illusion of Ladybug to swing down below, watching a few people get their phones out and snap photos. Then, she had her swing round behind a building where no one could see, and ended the mirage. The two heroes soon said their goodbyes as Chat picked them both off and dropped Rena on the ground as he headed off home. 

Alya detransformed and hid Trixx in her pocket as she strolled back to the hospital, sneaking easily past the receptionist who was dosing in and out of sleep and walked into Mari’s room. She whispered to Tikki and watched the kwami appear from behind the chair. Alya was about to take off the necklace when the red Kwami asked her to keep it on. Marinette showed no signs over waking up yet, and Chat needed backup. Normally, the girl would be absolutely ecstatic to be a superhero for longer and get to talk to Trixx more, however she knew this meant Tikki didn’t think it likely Marinette would wake up in the next day or two. 

She prayed Tikki was wrong. She missed her best friend.

**Author's Note:**

> This was only beta read once so please excuse any grammar or spelling mistakes! If you liked this chapter, please give it a comment or Kudo’s and i’ll hopefully interest a few of you in a second chapter!
> 
> You can also find me on tumblr @ miraculousmarinettelb


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